Govt concerned over poor agri credit disbursement

FE Team | Published: October 25, 2007 00:00:00 | Updated: February 01, 2018 00:00:00

FE Report
The authorities are concerned over the poor disbursement of agriculture credit as state-owned banks could distribute only Tk 8.85 billion during the first three months of the current fiscal
This is only 13 per cent of the total disbursement target for the fiscal 2007-08.
Against the backdrop of such dismal disbursement scenario, a high-level committee will meet Sunday next to devise plans to help flood-affected cultivators get farm loans as early as possible, official sources said.
The government earlier formed an 11-member committee to supervise, monitor and disbursement of the post-flood agro-credit of the state-owned banks and financial institutions.
Deputy Governor of the Bangladesh Bank (BB) Nazrul Huda has been made the convener of the committee while the General Manager of the Agricultural Credit and Special Programme Department (ACSPD) of BB is member secretary.
Sources, however, said a good number of flood-affected farmers are not getting fresh loans due to some procedural complexities, including eligibility criteria and non-settlement of previous loans.
"We have already taken different measures to increase the flow of disbursement of the farm credit to help flood-hit farmers across the country," a BB senior official told the FE Wednesday.
He also said the central bank has already sanctioned Tk 7.0 billion to the Bangladesh Krishi Bank (BKB) and the Rajshahi Krishi Unnayan Bank (RAKUB) under a special re-financing scheme to avoid any liquidity problem of these banks relating to disbursement of the agro-credit.
Besides, the central bank has relaxed the existing rules and regulations to allow the flood-affected farmers for taking fresh credit through rescheduling of their previous classified loans.
Under the measure, the banks are allowed to reschedule the agro-credit for one year by relaxing the existing down payment conditionality.
A total of Tk 68.44 billion agro-credit was earmarked for distribution among the flood-affected farmers through eight state-owned banks and financial institutions for fiscal 2007-08.
The eight state-owned banks and financial institutions are: Sonali Bank, Janata Bank, Agrani Bank, Rupali Bank, BKB, RAKUB, Bangladesh Rural Development Board (BRDB) and Bangladesh Samobaya Bank Limited (BSBL).
The loans are to be sanctioned for eight agro-based sub-sectors like crops, irrigation equipment, livestock, agricultural products marketing, fisheries and poverty alleviation.